LET’S NOT KID EACH OTHER: AS MUCH AS WE HIT THE GYM TO FEEL AWESOME, LIVE LONGER, COMPETE WITH OUR BUDDIES, RELIEVE stress, and, of course, have a damn good time slinging giant pieces of steel, it doesn’t hurt that working out makes us look damn good too. Which means that, if you’re a guy seeking to round out your sex appeal, you’re probably more than familiar with all the coveted (admittedly superficial) physical attributes that constitute a “perfect male physique” — the ones even hardcore gym rats have trouble achieving. These include the well-defined arm “horseshoe” (see: Mark Wahlberg in The Fighter), ridiculously chiselled V-cut abs (see: Brad Pitt in Fight Club), and the giant wingspan of a well-carved upper back (see: Hugh Jackman in any film in which he sprouts metallic claws). So, with the help of some of the world’s best trainers, strength coaches, and strongmen, we’ve laid out in exhaustive detail everything it takes to achieve them. If you’d love a physique even Michelangelo’s David would be envious of, we’d advise you to start here.
GOAL NO. 1
THE TAPERED TORSO
● REMEMBER THE OLD ADAGE that “abs are made in the kitchen?” Well, the same principle applies to your entire midsection. “You can do all the gym work in the world”, says Zach Even-Esh, founder of New Jersey’s The Underground Strength Gym in the US, “but if your body’s covered by a layer of fat, then nobody will know”.
That’s why getting yourself on a very strict, clean diet — with the right balance of proteins, fats, and carbs — is the key to transforming your flabby torso into a perfectly cut, tapered midsection.
But how do you do it? The first order of business is to get your math in order, and that means calculating what your overall calorie intake needs to be, says sports nutritionist and strength coach CJ Murphy, MFS, owner of Total Performance Sports, in Malden, USA.
